Video: Cornel West keynote speech excerpt

Posted October 26, 2009; 05:42 p.m.

by Evelyn Tu

Cornel West, the Class of 1943 University Professor in the Center for African American Studies, gave one of three keynote speeches at Princeton's "Coming Back and Moving Forward" black alumni conference, which took place Oct. 22-24. West spoke about his newly released memoir, "Brother West: Living and Loving Out Loud." Read more.

Video Closed Captions

Cornel West:
Piety is the acknowledgement of the sources of good in your life.

Cornel West:
So, it could be your mother. It could be your wife or husband.

Cornel West:
It could be your friend. It could be art. It could be text. It can even be library.

Cornel West:
What is it that keeps you sane enough,

Cornel West:
that preserves your movement and motion in life? And it is bigger than you.

Cornel West:
Your reverent attachment to whatever that is is piety

Cornel West:
because you are expressing gratitude, and when you express gratitude,

Cornel West:
it doesn't allow the ego inside of your soul to have too much space.

Cornel West:
It pushes the ego to the side, 'cause you're forever thankful,